June 2014 – Page 2 – Christian Vitality | Christian Weight Loss | Christian Health & Fitness

Dark Chocolate: God’s gift to you and me that cures what ails you!

Yes, Dark Chocolate, and more importantly chocolate with a Cacao content of 72% or higher is not only good for you it can help prevent some pretty nasty ailments.

I’ve been eating Dark Chocolate for about 2 years now. I was first turned on to it by Mark of Primal Blueprint fame, when he convinced me to give it and try it as a supplement to my diet, because it had so many benefits and was a nice replacement for this choco-holic who just quit his long-term sweet-addiction.

I started with 72% (and would recommend at least 70%), which today I’d say is a bit to sweet for me and a bit high in sugar. I slowly graduated up over time to an 86% Cacao (you can find it at Trader Joes if you have one close by) which is the highest I’ve been able to find.

I imagine if you ate cacao-nibs, you can increase the Cacao percentage, but I’ve not yet found a way to easily integrate those little guys into my diet. I’ve tried them and the experience was a little like chewing on little wood bits that had a slight chocolate flavor. I guess people who use them a lot use them in homemade shakes and smoothies. Evidently some people also throw them into savory dishes. Any way you can get them into your diet is a good thing and once you read all of the health benefits of Dark Chocolate I might have you convinced as well.

Dr Mark Hyman, in his great book Ultrametabolism recommends you eat between 1-3 ounces of dark chocolate everyday day. I’d like to add, that when you do so, make sure that it is after a meal or eaten with some other lower glycemic foods to help minimize the glycemic load of the chocolate. Even the very high cacao content chocolate has a pretty high level of sugar.

Another tip to keep in mind is that it’s very easy to go overboard on this super-food. When you are going to eat dark chocolate ration out your 1-3 ounces and put away the rest. You’ll be glad you did. I know, speaking from experience, I’ve gone overboard on more than one occasion in the name of super-food consumption.

Here are just some of the benefits of Dark Chocolate:

Dark Chocolate contains healthy fats. Mostly monounsaturated and saturated fat, with very little polyunsaturated fat. Most of the saturated fat is stearic acid widely know to have no bad effects on LDL cholesterol, so you don’t have to have any guilt to enjoy cacao fat.
Dark Chocolate is loaded with Polyphenols too. In particular flavanols. When it comes to polyphenols & antioxidant capacity, Dark Chocolate blows away any other super-food. The most studied polyphenol in cacao is epicatechin, a flavanol that is highly potent and potentially healthy for humans.
Dark Chocolate lowers your blood pressure too. Epidemiological studies consistently show that dark chocolate consumption is related with lower blood pressure readings. One study even found that eating dark chocolate for 15 days straight, lowered blood pressure and insulin sensitivity in healthy subjects.
Cacao consumption has been proven to improve arterial flow of blood in smokers.
Dark Chocolate can reduce cardiovascular disease.
Dark Chocolate lowered insulin resistance in diabetic patients (in addition to lowering blood pressure).
Dark chocolate is good for folks who have a fatty liver (some of us who have been eating sugar in high doses all of our lives are in this camp). The chocolate can reduce oxidative stress and inflammation as well.
Dark chocolate can help increase our body’s natural defense against UV exposure. In several studies recently it’s been proven that eating dark chocolate can increase our natural defense against the harmful affects of the sun by as much as double. So, you could stay out twice as long without sun-damage.

So, go eat some dark chocolate with dinner tonight. Make sure it’s high in cacao (70%+) and low in sugar. Eat it with your meal and feel good knowing you just took in some of the best tasting medicine on the planet. Thank you God for the gift of Dark Chocolate.

So, what’s your favorite dark chocolate recipe? Have you tried 86% Cacao ye? Tell me about your experiences with Dark Chocolate below in the comments.

[MUST READ] The “Metabolic Winter” Hypothesis…

Just released to me on his “Private” email list is an amazing article backed by 103 research studies & publications about metabolism, fasting, nutrition, fitness, and the rest of what’s important to you and me and our health. A must read. Warning it is very technical and some of it may be tough to get through for the non-medical types. I think the average person would find HUGE value in reading at least the ‘Putting it altogether” and “conclusion” sections. Let me know what you think in the comments…

P.S. I’ll be writing up my top take-aways from the Metabolic Winter and sharing them with you soon. What’s your biggest ah-ha moment? Please let me know in the comments

Shared with permission of Ray Cronise, BS

Download Metabolic Winter Hypothesis for FREE here:

http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/pdf/10.1089/met.2014.0027

Contact Ray Cronise, BS by clicking here.

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Thermogenex

PO Box 12251

Huntsville, Alabama 35815

Try new activities for new muscle & weight loss gains!

Keep moving and keep growing — Make great gains by trying new things.

You are going to laugh at me likely when I tell you that today I am so sore that getting up out of a chair is very difficult and walking is impossible without a slight limp. What terrible amount of exercise or activity was it that made this 43 year old fairly fit man so sore he can hardly walk?

I umpired a Majors Level Softball game for my 12 Year-old daughter.

Yep. Umpiring…

In hindsight if you look at the activity I was doing to Umpire the game I was either doing a movement very similar to a squat (you’d see in a gym) or and lunge (also a common gym movement). I did it for every pitch of the 2 hours worth of Umpiring. I estimate that I probably did about 150 – 300 repetitions of the movement with my full body weight.

To make things worse Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS) which is what I am suffering from increases for activities and actions that involve long term muscle stress that elongates the muscle…kind of like a squat that is held or a lunge that is held for a few seconds. These are called eccentric contractions and are the most common cause of DOMS.

So, a little warning for you, when you try new activities there a few precautions you can take that will help prevent or reduce the amount of DOMS that you experience when you try new things.

Make sure that you stretch the muscles being used before and after the exercise or activity.
Make sure to stay hydrated before, during, and after.
Make sure to do a warm up of the movement using about 50% of the stress that you expect to see during the exercise.
Take recovery supplement(s) like L-Glutamine (5-10 grams) & Creatine Monohydrate (5-10 grams) immediately following the exercise and first thing in the morning the day after. I take both for a couple of days after, 2-3 times per day depending on how sore I am.

DOMS pain and soreness peaks at about 48 hours after the activity and slowly subsides over the days following.

Please don’t associate DOMS as a bad thing it is a sign that your muscles have had a small amount of damage to them and your body will grow the muscles stronger to adapt (the process known as hypertrophy).

And don’t use it as an excuse to not try new things frequently. Changing things up is a prerequisite of a healthy lifestyle and keeps life (and exercise) from becoming boring.

I hope also that my story about Umpiring will also highlight the fact that even something like Umpiring, which on the surface doesn’t look like great exercise, can have a fairly fit guy so sore he can hardly get up out of a chair. Always be trying new ways to keep your self moving.

Or another way to state it as a mantra to adopt “Always be moving!”.

Please share in the comments below your favorite activity and maybe an activity that you look forward to trying soon.

Be blessed and always keep moving…

In times of FAILURE get back in the saddle again!

Get back in the saddle toward your success! — In times of failure whether spiritual or weight loss or nutrition. Don’t focus on the failure.

Imagine for a moment that you are riding a horse…I know you may not yet have had the pleasure like I have, but you’ve likely seen plenty of folks on TV or online to at least get the idea.

Ok…so you’re galloping along (which is faster than trotting, but not a full out run and your enjoying the scenery. The sun is shining and your surroundings are beautiful. All you hear is the rhythmic sounds of your horse’s feet hitting the ground and the snort from your horse breathing.

All of a sudden you hit a tree branch and are knocked to the ground flat on your face.

Ouch!

Your horse being an awesome, owner-loving-horse (nothing like my last horse Malika) stops just a few dozen feet ahead of you and does what horses do…immediately starts grazing on some grass next to the trail.

I share this somewhat painful imagery to hammer home a point of getting back in the saddle.

So, what should I do if I’ve cheated on my weight loss nutrition plan, or I’ve missed my workout three days in a row, or I binged on Chocolate Cake & Ice Cream last night…whatever the personal “failure” it doesn’t matter.

So, in a sense you’ve lost some momentum somewhat like you just did on your imaginary horse. So, what?

The good news is that its’ only been a little while since you were riding the horse off into the fat loss sunset, before you decided to gracefully (on your own accord) dismount and take a break. again…Ouch!

In our Christian Fatloss Program (not yet released as of the time I’m posting this) I designed some breaks from the diet & exercise on purpose. It’s helpful by design. It allows your body & mind a reset the system of sorts and help break up any thoughts of monotony.

So, partner, its time to saddle up and start back down the trail to your Spiritual & Physical Recovery. Dust yourself off (get rid of any bad foods you’ve might of indulged in during your free/cheat days) pick yourself up (get ready to exercise & eat clean again) and mount up.

Some of my victories along my journey to lose weight — Celebrate your accomplishments on your fat loss journey

It’s much easier mounting this horse this time, than it was when you started, isn’t it? You’ve likely made some gains and had some small victories. Allow yourself to celebrate them. You are a Victory In Progress.

Your new title: V.I.P.

Doesn’t that feel great?

Celebrate now…take a quick look down the road from where you came from and turn back down the road to a healthier happier You!

So, what changes have you made in your life so far that you can celebrate? Any diet or exercise changes? drop any pounds (or stones for my UK friends) that we can celebrate with you? Please share in the comments below…

Breakfast, lunch, or dinner you’ll love this Samson-sized low calorie meal!

This recipe is great for high nutrient dense low-caloire meals

One of my favorite parts of Saturdays is that I take a break from my Intermittent Fasting. I make sure that I not only eat breakfast, but I eat a Big Breakfast that any one would be proud of.

The overall plan of all of my meals if you haven’t already figured it out, is to eat only good fats, a ton of protein, and a ton of veggies.

One of the things that helps me do that on Saturday mornings is one of my favorite dishes (have to say my wife even likes it as long as I omit the mushrooms).

So, here’s the recipe and how to prepare it. There are many variants as far as the veggies are concerned, so I generally use what I have on hand at the moment. For me it typically consists of Zucchini (or yellow squash), purple onions (or shallots), green chiles, jalapenos, bell peppers, and some specific spices and of course Omega-3 eggs (cage free if I can get them).

Step 1) I set the pan to medium heat on our gas stove-top and throw about 1 tablespoon of coconut oil in it. I use coconut oil for all of my cooking. I stay away from Olive oil for cooking and generally only us it uncooked. (the reason being is that olive oil and other oils tend to oxidize when they are heated…it changes their chemical make-up and they are no longer as good for you after you heat them). Coconut Oil (especially high-heat coconut oil) isn’t as susceptible to heat damage (oxidation) compared to other oils and it has some very unique nutritional benefits that are great for you.

Eat Purple Onions for awesome health benefits — Purple onions have polyphenols & flavanoids. Antioxidant miracle veggies.

Step 2) Chop your hot chiles, jalapeno, onions (shallots) and throw them in first. Cook for 5-7 minutes (constantly turning or tossing over the heat) or until they start to show some carmelization. I do so with these guys first because the heat tends to knock of some of the spiciness of them.

Step 3) Throw in your zucchini & yellow squash…the sliced (or chopped) bell peppers and chopped celery.

Celery is great for your health — Celery’s components have been scientifically proven to kill cancer cells in a lab

Step 4) While the veggies are cooking throw in garlic powder, low-salt (or salt free) multi-spice, paprika, ground black pepper, and salt. Sometimes I throw in yellow curry which has Tumeric in it and is highly nutritious.

Step 5) Once the veggies have reached your desired tenderness throw in 3-5 Omega-3 eggs and stir in until eggs are completely cooked and water has evaporated.

Step 6) Serve and Enjoy! Knowing you are feeding your body with some great fuel and signaling your body’s DNA to keep you healthy & strong.

Ingredients:

1-2 zucchinis or yellow squashes
1-2 green chiles
1-2 jalapenos
1/2 a purple onion
2 stalks of celery
1/2 purple onion (purple has a higher nutritional value) or equivalent amount of shallots
2-3 cloves of garlic (to replace garlic powder if you have it)
1 red/yellow/green bell pepper
3-5 eggs
1/2 tsp of Paprika
1/2 teaspoon Garlic Power (if you don’t have fresh garlic)

How many calories in this dish? Well, the coconut oil is about 100 calories (minus what you lose to cook off). The eggs are about 70 calories each (I use 5 of them for 350 calories). The zucchini and squash are about 20 calories each. Celery is 10 calories per stalk. After all is said and done I have a HUGE plate of food worth about 600 – 750 calories. It’s so much food that I often give Diana half and still have a decent meal, but honestly…I most often eat the whole plate and am full for most of the day and half to force myself to eat lunch.

Please try this. I had it this morning for Breakfast.

You’ll love the ability to have a guilt-free pig-out-party and can feel good about feeding yourself full of an endless list of healthy nutrients.

If you do try it, please comment & share. I’d love to hear you feedback. Or please share your variation. I’m always trying news things and will give YOUR recipe a try.

Side note: If your are implementing Intermittent Fasting (like I did by only eating between 1:00pm – 7:00pm) this is a great way to get to fill yourself up with a relatively low number of high nutrient density foods and not feel hungry at all.

Will you try this? If you have, what do you think? Easy huh? Have any favorite low-calorie recipes to share with us? Please share your comments below…

When ahead in the race…don’t coast to the finish line!

Run the race on your journey with the Lord in such a way as to WIN! — Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. 1 Corinthians 9:24 ESV
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Imagine for a moment you’ve decided to run a race. A real foot race. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a mile, a 5k, 10k or even a marathon.

You have a close friend of yours that you’ve made a friendly bet with of whoever gets the best time will take the other out to dinner afterwards. You are both at the same level of fitness and you both have an equal chance of winning.

You give it your all and about 80% of the distance to the finish you find yourself so far ahead that, there’s no way that your partner in crime can catch up.

So, you find yourself in this mental game we often get into with ourselves. Should I ease up and take it easy…you know…coast in to the finish line in style?

You could do so easily, without chancing the loss to your friend.

Taking out the compassion for your friend argument out…you know, slowing down and letting them catch up (which I would fully endorse from a philosophical standpoint), you promised God you’d do your best and accept whatever the outcome. So, if you ease up and coast in are you fulfilling your promise to him?

What about to yourself? Would you be letting yourself down by not staying the course and giving it your all? You’d still win, wouldn’t you?

I’d like to make the point that once we commit to the race, whether its the race Paul talks about on our spiritual journey and service to Jesus or whether it’s your weight loss program that you should always give it your best…your very best.

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. 1 Corinthians 9:24 ESV

That way you’ll finish knowing you didn’t let yourself down, you did “everything unto the Lord and not to men”, and finally you wouldn’t be letting your friend down either. Don’t you think they’d be upset if you told them you pulled back and coasted all the way in?

23 Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. Colossians 3:23-24 ESV

Whatever you have on your plate for today. Give it your best effort…your very best. Some days your level of best will vary and that’s okay. Just give it the best you can today. You’ll be glad you did and make God proud in doing so.

let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, Hebrews 12:1b ESV

Be blessed today as you honor God with your spiritual & physical life.

Excerpt from Christian Fatloss Program sharing my fat loss journey with members of the private weight loss program for Christians.

My Journey Alongside Yours: Today I weighed in at 211 lbs. Achieving my 5% goal for this cycle of 211.375 (or less). If you compare last Friday (1 week ago exactly) to today I have lost 2 lbs this week which is par for the course. It was another one of those weeks where my weight jumped up a bit from my lowest 212.5 of last week and it appeared that I might be lucky to hit 212.5 this week.

Yesterday I did hit 212lbs for my official weigh in for week 4 of 5 for this cycle, appearing to only lost .5 lbs. God is good though and if you stick to the plan the weight loss will come.

In hindsight I was sore for quite a bit of the week from my softball game last Friday and had my back slightly out (probably from picking up my 3 year old). The inflammation as I’ve pointed out numerous times in the weeks prior was having me carry around all that extra water.

So, do I sit back and coast knowing I achieved my goal?

No way. I’ll stick to the plan and the fact I play Softball again tonight will likely set me up for a bit of swelling for next week. I can only hope an pray that I hit 211lbs or lower next Wednesday on my final weigh in for this cycle.

Who’s your judge? God of course. And mostly you are accountable to him and yourself. Give this week the honest effort you deserve. “Do everything unto the Lord and not to men”, remember?

4 days to go until the 2 day break and the end of this cycle. After the break we’ll jump back into to 5 days of grace and then start the next cycle.

Let’s do this! Make him proud…make yourself proud.

What do you think of this post? have you been guilty of coasting through life at times? Share some instances or challenges you faced? Share your victories in the comments below.

Find YOUR Majestic Moment – they’re everywhere!

God's Majestic on Display in Creation — Find YOUR Majestic Moment Today!

One of my mentors is big on Magic Moments and although he professes to be a Christian, he’s more mainstream and focused on more mainstream audiences.

His philosophy is that at the end of our lives we’re not going to remember most of the things that keeps us busy, but we will remember the Magic Moments. He believes we should strive to fill our lives with those kinds of moments in order to achieve fulfillment. I totally agree.

This morning I had one of those most amazing moments. For the last week or two after I get the kids ready with their breakfast and before I jump into the getting ready routine, I’ve been trying to spend 20 minutes in the sun everyday on the deck off of my bedroom.

I’m blessed to have a view of the mountains here in North Scottsdale which are literally only 3 miles away and in my backyard. My deck faces North so in the morning I face east on a barcalounger and was really enjoying the moment. I started to meditate on God’s word and focusing on being grateful in the moment and the word Majesty came to mind.

God is Majestic. His creation is awesome and all around us. We are his creation. Our friends, our family, and all the things around us are his creation (in harmony with man’s creation).

Within a couple of minutes of these thoughts it started to sprinkle. When I say sprinkle, I mean the kind of huge drops that often come with thunderheads When I looked up at the sky, I saw almost exactly what the photo above shows. Drops every second or two coming straight down on me as I looked straight up. It was one of those wow moments that made me think, “hey God thanks for that you are awesome” kind of moments. A Majestic Moment.

So, whether you are in an Urban surrounding or in the middle of the woods, try to set aside 20 minutes to have yourself an encounter…your Majestic Moment. An encounter with God, a Majestic Moment, that you will never forget.

You can have one of these moments in the middle of the woods, the desert, driving in your car. I had one recently in a park in the middle of downtown Kansas City recently.

God’s creation and Majesty are on display for all to see…you just have to take them time to look.

Be blessed my friend as you strive to see God’s Majesty and store up your own Majestic Moments.

Share in the comments a Majestic Moment you had today, this week, or this month that you remember feeling that overwhelming sense of gratitude for God presence in your life. Do have any? Share some things you might be able to do this week that will set you up to have one? I want to hear from you all in the comments below.